Vietnam – Vietjet has signed a finance lease agreement with China's SPDB Financial Leasing for 10 COMAC C909 narrowbody aircraft, expanding its exposure to Chinese-manufactured jets and marking a significant commercial endorsement of the COMAC platform outside mainland China.

The agreement was announced during a state visit to China by Vietnam's newly elected President To Lam, reflecting the diplomatic dimension of the deal as part of broader efforts to deepen Vietnam-China economic and aviation ties.
The 10 C909 aircraft will be deployed on Vietnam-China routes, with Vietjet in the process of opening five new routes connecting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with Chinese cities including Hangzhou, Enshi, Guilin, and Huangshan.
The deal builds on an existing arrangement under which Vietjet had been operating two COMAC jets in cooperation with Chengdu Airlines; the finance lease structure with SPDB Financial Leasing places the aircraft on Vietjet's own fleet rather than under an arrangement with another carrier.
Vietjet currently operates 135 aircraft, predominantly Airbus models, and has a combined order book of nearly 600 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus across narrow and widebody types; the C909 acquisition represents a diversification of the airline's fleet supply base.
Vietnam approved the commercial operation of the COMAC C909 in 2025 following a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Hanoi; COMAC has been seeking to build its international customer base in Southeast Asia through airlines in Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Laos, and Indonesia.

AFM note: Fleet expansions of this scale carry direct implications for pilot training demand. The addition of 10 C909 aircraft on new Vietnam-China routes will require dedicated type rating and recurrent training capacity for Vietjet's pilots, and adds COMAC as a third OEM training pathway alongside Airbus and Boeing for the airline's training infrastructure.

Source: Vietjet Air

South East Asian Budget Carrier Group Signs Finance Lease for 10 Chinese-Manufactured Narrowbody Aircraft in 2026

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